'Monsters' Director Teams with 'Wanted' Helmer on New Sci-Fi Film

Though 'Monsters' has made a splash on the festival circuit, most movie-goers don't yet know the name Gareth Edwards, and how Edwards was able to create a large-scale sci-fi thriller on a shoestring budget. That's okay -- his break-out hit might be right around the corner.

Edwards is writing a new project to direct for producer Timur Bekmambetov ('Wanted'), described as "an epic human story, set in a futuristic world without humanity." Sounds a little bit like Bekmambetov's '9', the "human" story of a post-apocalyptic world without people, that he co-produced with Tim Burton. The similarities don't end there. '9' was also directed by someone (animator Shane Acker) who made a creative impression on Bekmambetov with an imaginative low-budget effort.

Despite the title, 'Monsters' is not really about the alien monsters themselves (check out Peter Hall's SXSW review here), but about the relationship between two American travelers trying to get back to the United States against all odds. The focus is definitely on the characters in that film, and from the sound of the new project, Edwards looks to be continuing his interest in human stories against a larger sci-fi backdrop.